Massage Therapists! YOU are responsible for client safety.

Every once in a while, I am reminded of how important it is to be vigilant when interacting with and treating clients. As a massage therapist, I am ultimately responsible for the safety of my client, from initial intake to homecare suggestions.

I was recently reminded of this fact a few weeks ago when I was sitting in my gym’s reception area, waiting for my spinning class to start. There is a conveniently located massage therapy clinic in my gym, and I am very pleased that one of my former students is employed there. She’s a great person, and a great therapist, so imagine my surprise when I overheard her suggest to her client that he do his homecare stretches in the shower.

Now, I distinctly remember the day when I was teaching the Remedical Exercise class a few years ago when we had this debate in class. Apparently the students had been told by another instructor to tell clients they could do their stretches in the shower. My argument against it was that stetching in the shower was a bad idea for several reasons – it’s wet, it’s slippery, and it’s very easy for people to get dizzy in the heat. As a combination of factors, this is an ultimate recipe for a slip and fall to occur.

As a matter of fact, in the article Bath Safety – Preventing Slip and Fall Accidents in the Bathroom, it is cited that

“Statistics show bathrooms can be the most dangerous room in your house. 70% of home accidents occur in the bathroom. The combination of water and smooth surfaces makes taking a bath or shower a risky proposition. Slip and falls account for over 20,000 fatalities per year in North America. It is the second leading cause of accidental death and disability after automobile accidents. Over 75% of slip-fall deaths occur to people 65 years of age or older…”

See my point? Yet I doubt that many massage therapy instructors OR even massage therapists think about this fact. Should it be common sense? ABSOLUTELY!!!!! And not only for massage professionals, but for the clients themselves. However, how many people blindly follow the advice of various health care professionals, much to their detriment? Tons of them, I know it. There may be therapists who will say “It is ultimately the client’s responsibility”, and you are right, to a point. But like I said, many clients take advice literally, trusting that their health care professional will give them the best information possible.

And “stretching in the shower” isn’t the only area that I am disappointed to see massage therapists failing the best interests of their clients. I have refused to treat clients with Congestive Heart Failure who wanted Manual Lymphatic Drainage to relieve their edema – telling me that their previous therapist “used to do it once a week”. (hint – MLD is contraindicated for CHF as it increases fluid return to a cardiovascular system that is already stressed out) I have refused to work distal to, and directly on, bulging varicose veins. Yes, I understand that varicose veins are uncomfortable, but when I explained to my client that deep pressure over clotted blood can break up the clot (clots are also known as “thrombus”) and cause an embolus, she was horrified that her previous massage therapist “used to drive his elbow along her calf muscles” to relieve the tension.

Don’t worry, I’m not just picking on massage therapists, I have seen other health care professionals take some pretty big risks with client safety and health. Notably:

1. The chiropractor who berated me for refusing to provide Swedish massage to an elderly lady with uncontrolled high blood pressure (I don’t remember the reading, but it was sufficiently high for me to recommend that she go to a doctor before heading home). Apparently the chiropractor in question was one who routinely did cervical spine adjustments on patients with high blood pressure in the 150/95 range. (OMG!!!). Huge potential for a stroke, here, people. Stressed arteries neighboring immobile joints are not good. Mobilizing this joints with a high-velocity, low-amplitude thrust – even worse.

2. The physiotherapist who performed a cervical spine manipulation on a patient without getting his consent, and without viewing the xrays first. Guess what? The client had osteophytes in his cervical spine from 2 WAD (whiplash associated disorder) injuries, and subsequently developed arthritis and osteophytes. Even worse, this manipulation damaged the nerves as they exited the spinal column, and this client now has permanent weakness, numbness and tingling in both hands, in the ulnar area.

3. Don’t even get me started on physicians who mis-prescribe or over-prescribe medication … Enough said.

I guess my main point from this discourse is that a little common sense goes a long way. For some health care professionals (ahem) the almighty dollar drives them to treat patients or clients who maybe are better off getting cleared for treatment, or for seeking other alternatives to relieve their conditions or pain.

Also, as a profession that is trying to gain legitimacy, the conduct of its practitioners needs to be held to a high standard. If we act like quacks, that is how we will be viewed. If we are trying to be taken seriously by the public and other health care professionals, then we have to step up as individuals and as a collective and do right by our clients, even if it means turning people away. We have a Code of Ethics for a reason, and need to keep it in mind for every client.

Personally, I would rather take home less money than take money from someone who may ultimately be harmed from something I did. If I think about how I would want someone to treat a member of my family, or anyone else I love, I am very comfortable in saying that in a strange way I feel good if I refuse to treat, knowing that I have had an opportunity to educate my client and assist him or her in getting the treatment which is the best for his or her circumstances. And for the record, when I explain to my clients the reason why I may alter a treatment, or forgo treatment altogether, they are generally very understanding and appreciative that I put their welfare ahead of my financial needs.

So, What are you going to do?

© Copyright 2010 Jodi Forsythe
www.whymassagetherapy.com
All Rights Reserved.

UN Climate Change Conference – Speak Up and Get Involved!

“The ultimate test of a moral society is the kind of world that it leaves to its children.” Dietrich Bonhoeffer

From December 7 to 18^th, 2009, world leaders will be meeting at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen to ratify the Kyoto Protocol – an agreement of 37 industrialized countries that is based on the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.  The Protocol was agreed upon in 1997 in Kyoto, Japan, and entered into effect in February, 2005.

The goal of the Protocol is, in a nutshell, to hold industrialized nations accountable for reducing carbon emissions and introducing environmentally sustainable industrial practices.

In researching Canada’s contribution (or lack thereof) to the Protocol’s compliance, I was dismayed to see on the website Climate Justice (under the auspices of Friends of the Earth) that as of October 31, 2006,

“The Kyoto Protocol Compliance Committee and the Canadian Environment Minister have today been informed that Canada is violating the Kyoto Protocol and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), thus legally requiring action under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) to control greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

According to last month’s report by the Canadian Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development, the gap between Canada’s GHG emissions and its Kyoto commitments is growing: Canada’s GHG emissions in 2004 were 26.6% above 1990 levels, resulting in a gap of 34.6% from Canada’s Kyoto target of a 6% reduction by 2008-2012. Per capita, Canadians are amongst the highest emitters in the world, with the production and consumption of fossil fuels accounting for 80% of these emissions.“

As it is 2009, and the UN Summit is less than 8 weeks away, I would like to think that we have improved in the last 3 years, but somehow I have my doubts.

What I don’t understand is, that in a wealthy and prosperous country that is my home (Canada), we are failing our obligations to meet the carbon reduction targets. Climate change seems to be the elephant in the room – everyone knows it’s an issue, but so few wish to acknowledge it.  The argument I typically hear, unfortunately by some people close to me, is that enforcing the protocol, (to which we are legally bound, by the way) will hurt existing industry.

What is my opinion on this? (you knew it was coming). I say “bullshit“ – existing industry which violates the standards may slow down in the short term and eventually end, but Canada can and should be at the forefront of not only carbon emission reduction, but also the development and implementation of alternative, clean energy sources. After all, if our country built the Space Arm, how hard can it be to develop solar panels, wind energy and the like?  And think of the jobs that can be created in these industries! The economic and environmental potential is endless, and we cannot sit by and complain about how hard things are if we haven’t stepped up to the plate and acted on our own behalf and that of future generations.

I hate to think of myself and my fellow countrymen as complacent, but it appears that if we don’t recognize that we are at the 11^th hour environmentally, there is little hope for future generations. I don’t have children, but I really hate to think of my niece and the children of my friends living in an environmental wasteland that we could have prevented had we not been so lazy and complacent. How pathetic is that? And, for my American readers, don’t get high on yourselves, either. Hopefully now that Obama is in the White House, you’ll get your act together, too.

What I recommend is that you get online and check out the following links:

UN Climate Summit – Backgrounder for Canadians – read this even if you’re not Canadian but would like more information on the topic.

UN Climate Summit -  Countdown to Change
Canadians – get involved, and send a message to our Prime Minister and Leaders of the Opposition – make your voice heard NOW.

United Nations Climate Change Conference – December 7 to 18^th, 2009

For general environmental information, check out the David Suzuki Foundation website – David Suzuki is a true environmental hero.

If you don’t want to do this for yourselves, the polar bears or the planet, please do it for future generations.  Our generation might not be around to benefit in 100 years or so, but we will be remembered as the generation who had the courage to step up, make difficult choices and make a change in the face of adversity.  Wouldn’t that be a great legacy to leave?

© Copyright 2009
www.whymassagetherapy.com
All Rights Reserved.

Massage therapists – Stop Complaining and Participate in Your Associations.

To really affect change in the massage therapy industry, therapists must stop being so complacent and exercise their democratic rights as association members. Much the same as voting for the leadership in your country, if you don’t make yourself heard by attending industry meetings, you don’t have the right to complain.

Yesterday I went to the SAGM of the Massage Therapists’ Association of Nova Scotia (MTANS). I admit I hadn’t been for a while, since the last one I went to 3 years ago was poorly run, unorganized, and really turned out to be a fiasco. All in all, it was very frustrating and unproductive. However, a lot has changed since that time, and since there are winds of change brewing in our profession, I felt the need to get involved again.

The most unfortunate thing about yesterday’s meeting, other than the whole insurance fraud issue wasn’t on the agenda, was that there weren’t even enough members present to reach quorum. This is really disappointing, as many of us, including and especially Board and committee members, had taken time out of our weekends and away from our families to be present and vote on critical issues in our profession. As it turned out, it was a great social occasion, but it looks like we’ll have to attend another meeting on yet another Sunday.

As I left the meeting with one of my friends and colleagues, she made a really great point – some of the people we know who didn’t attend are always the ones to criticize the association. It happens every year, and while these same people spend lots of energy complaining and criticizing the association board, they can’t be bothered to show up at meetings or sign the proxy forms.

Hmmm … it reminds me of politics, because in reality, it is. One look at world history has demonstrated that a vote can change the course of history, for better or for worse. One vote could make the difference to your association, your industry and your future. So, the next time I hear a complaint about policy XYZ, let’s just hope you were at the meeting, because if you weren’t, I don’t want to hear it. You have lost the right to complain.

© Copyright 2009
www.whymassagetherapy.com
All Rights Reserved.